KIRLIAN CAMERA

Eclipse-Das Schwarze Denkmal

Normally, we would review the version from 1988 which was released on Discordia, but because this CD is only available at collector’s prices, we chose the reissue on Out Of Line, and you get an extra CD on top.

Das Schwarze Denkmal was a very important record for Kirlian Camera which was back then (of course) Angelo Bergamini, Mauro Montacchini, Bianca Hoffman and Charlie Malozzi. This classic was produced by John Fryer, and of course the album is primarily known because you can find the most famous song of the Italian darkwave band on it: Eclipse.

But this record is more than that, and although my favorite Kirlian Camera period is the one with Elena Alice Fossi, the best songs Bergamini ever composed are on Das Schwarze Denkmal. What Low was for Bowie, is Das Schwarze Denkmal for Bergamini: the work of an artist who was bigger than himself and his music almost sounded otherworldly.

The record doesn’t sound optimistic for one second. The Christ is tragedy in all its beauty, the saxophone in the song creates some peace, but the doomy keyboards are pure darkness. In the instrumental Celephais, you clearly hear Bergamini's fascination for classical composers.

I never understood whether Austria is about rage or madness, but it is certainly one of the most intriguing Kirlian Camera songs. The drums have a whipping EBM beat, but the synths sound like voices from the darkest nightmare a man can have. Kirlian Camera is beauty, but it also visits your mind in the most penetrating, terrifying way. Kirlian Camera is a way of life, and you can only understand that if you're addicted to them.

Tor Zwei is an instrumental track on which John Fryer plays along, and it immediately becomes clear why he's the producer of Medusa by Clan Of Xymox. You recognize the same oppressive atmosphere, darkwave at its best with at the end an organ sound that hits you in the face. When we asked Angelo to present his favourite records, some readers might haven been surprised with a choice that includes Popol Vuh and Klaus Schulze, but if you listen to Tor Zwei, everything becomes clear.

Aura is also an indestructible Kirlian Camera classic, and because of the beats, it may sound like a lighter track, but the text is pitch black. The masterpiece ends with a masterful rendition of Epitaph by King Crimson.

Personally, I can’t think of any better darkwave album than Das Schwarze Denkmal. It is certainly not a work that puts a smile on the listener's face, it simply makes him realize that music can be so scary, so beautiful, so life changing.

The bonus disc begins with Introduction, a dark ambient song. Eclipse (1994 Total Re-Make) has not stolen its name, because it is a completely reworked version with distorted vocals by Angelo.

Kirlian Camera always had an intense connection with industrial, fine examples of this are One Grey Morning and intimate Dresden T.

More experiment you can hear in Neden. Another version of Eclipse is Eclipse 22005 that could have been the ideal soundtrack of Solaris by Andrei Tarkovsky. Strange sounds from another world, another galaxy, another kind of life. Strange and difficult to describe.

The Third Lake actually should have been on Das Schwarze Denkmal, an instrumental song with a haunting violin.

Kirlian Camera is of course Elena Alice Fossi too. Because of her good looks, she has become the face of the Italian darkwave act, but she is also one of the most talented musicians and she was the one who gave the best band in the universe a second career. And so it is important that she is also part of this album, on Eclipse 2008th Anniversary you hear her divine voice that gives this godlike track a second life.

Austria is presented in a Full Metal Version, and because of the beats, it’s more suitable for the (better) dance floor. Finally, there are two other versions of Eclipse. The V4 version dates from 1998. It almost sounds like futurepop for people who are suffering from paranoia, it's made for the dance floor, but you can equally enjoy it on your bed while staring to the big nothing. Finally, there is a remix of :wumpscut:, and even though you do not expect it from Rudy Ratzinger, Eclipse remains quite melodious in his hands.

Das Schwarze Denkmal is a highlight in the career of an underrated group, when Elena joined lot of masterpieces followed, but that’s something we will talk about later!